This review first appeared on JimRaffel.com on March 9, 2012. It has been repurposed for this blog. To read the original, please click here.
Awhile back, our CEO Jim Raffel saw a post by Jeff Jarvis on Google+ announcing the release of his Kindle single “Gutenberg The Geek” (Amazon affiliate link via JimRaffel.com). At ColorMetrix, we develop color verification software for the printing industry so reading this book was like natural instinct.
About the book
“Gutenberg The Geek” is a quick read, but it’s chock full of great insights for any entrepreneur. While Gutenberg has always been the inventor of moveable type and the printing process; it’s interesting to view him as an entrepreneur.
In his work, Gutenberg figured out the right combination of paper, ink, impression pressure and dozens of other variables. Isn’t that what entrepreneurs do? They figure out what needs figuring out. They never quit, never give in.
Some quotes from the book
“As with good software, functionality comes first; beauty is a feature.”
After hundreds of years, the Gutenberg Bible can still be found at the Cary Library. These pages are still things of beauty, but that is only because the quality of the printing is second to none. Will what you are building survive you?
Here, too, was a lesson about the nature of technology: “Printing, like social networking, can be used by good actors and bad. In that sense, technology takes no sides.”
It’s not about the tools; it’s about who and how they are using them. When you read Mr. Jarvis’ single, you will find it interesting to see what Gutenberg printed before he got around to the Bible.
“How much longer will there be room for physical impressing ink onto paper? Perhaps by the 600th anniversary of Gutenberg’s press in 2040 or thereabouts, presses will be relegated to museums. There’s no shame in that.”
There is no shame in a 600-year run of a piece of technology. Sure, it saddens us to know we could live to see the demise of the printing industry, but we have to prepare and adapt to confront that eventuality.
“Gutenberg The Geek” is a great, quick read. It’s less biographical and more a book that makes you think about how to approach your own entrepreneurial pursuits.